Jimmy Buffet, that Son of a Son of a Sailor, passed away on September 1. The official release from his estate indicated “Jimmy passed away peacefully on the night of September 1st surrounded by his family, friends, music and dogs. He lived his life like a song till the very last breath and will be missed beyond measure by so many”.
The sudden passing of Sinéad O’Connor, the polarizing Irish songstress who rose to global prominence in the late 1980s, is bound to reignite strong feelings which she coaxed from her audiences both through her haunting vocals and provocative performances. Not just a performer, she was also a firebrand of an activist: a champion for the inequities she saw in the Catholic church and in the conflict that ravaged her native Ireland. You would be hard pressed to find another life that was a better reflection of her tumultuous Celtic homeland.
This week, the world paused from its daily routine of human, mundane, sometimes exhilarating, interactions to remember and celebrate the life of Tina Turner. Turner, who passed away on May 24, was one of those rare transcendent stars, breaking free from so many personal tragedies to become a global success story and inspiration to many. Why was she such an inspiration to so many? It is important to know a little of her background to understand her success.
Dear 2022,
You arrived with a fresh layer of snow, blanketing us here at the Dundee Library, covering all and offering us the opportunity for a clean slate, a longed-for return to normalcy and new beginnings. It seemed like you were letting us know that you, 2022, would be full of hope and showing us that we will all return to the world we were used to. For some of us, we could return to our old familiar routines and customs. For others, we could re-connect with friends and family or embark on beginnings: new adventures that had been two years delayed or put on hold.
2021 is blowing away. Literally. With the gale force winds on display over the last week, it seems nature is looking to sweep 2021 into the rear-view mirror. As we anticipate turning the calendar to a new year, some of us with hope and optimism, and some of us with a healthy dose of uncertainty, it’s a good time to look back and reflect on the musicians and singers we lost in 2021.
The arrival of March means that we will have 31 wonderful days to celebrate Women’s History Month. The library has multiple events planned for March, including a handful of great Trivia nights that will focus on lots of diverse women. WOMEN IN MUSIC TRIVIA: 1980'S EDITION, will take place on March 11. With so many great women making music in the Decade of Excess, there are lots of possibilities for questions.
“If there's a rock and roll heaven well you know they've got a hell of a band.” The Righteous Brothers hit #3 with Rock and Roll Heaven in 1974 in homage to the recent deaths of Jimmy Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Otis Redding. Unfortunately, 2020 has seen that heavenly band increase in size with the untimely passing of some very acclaimed, and dare I say legendary, musical artists. When the Covid-19 pandemic put a halt to most live music events around the world in early 2020, we turned to many different means to consume live and recorded music.
